Householders make Â£15 million a year renting out driveways

British homeowners are raking in millions of pounds a year from renting out their empty driveways and parking spaces to motorists.

Last year saw a record number of homeowners sign up to a scheme that helps them make money out of unused parking areas.

According to data from parking portal YourParkingSpace, there was a 41 per cent increase in households joining, with more than 29,000 new registrations.

Road to riches

In total, the companyâ€™s members made just over Â£15m by charging other drivers to use their private parking space or driveway.

Most of the money was made in London, where spaces range in price from Â£2 per hour to more than Â£30 per hour but the other most popular cities in the top 10 were Manchester, York, Bristol, Birmingham, Edinburgh, Leeds, Reading, Liverpool and Oxford.

Harrison Woods, managing director at YourParkingSpace.co.uk, said: â€œOur latest research reveals a significant increase in driveway and empty parking space registrations in 2018, up by more than 40 per cent over the previous year.

Charges around the country vary from less than Â£1 per hour to more than Â£30. Picture: Shutterstock

â€œIn a time of economic uncertainty, it would appear that more-and-more Brits are realising they can make a tidy sum from renting out their driveway to needy motorists.

â€œParticularly desirable locations include those in town and city centres, near railway stations, plus sports and music venues.â€

Among the other towns and cities to see a spike in registrations in 2018 were Southampton, Coventry, Cardiff, Brighton, Croydon, Glasgow, Cambridge, Norwich, Nottingham and Crawley.

Woods added: â€œEven less obvious locations, such as Crawley near Gatwick Airport, can provide a goldmine of opportunity for those savvy enough.â€